Q - I collect Chatillon scales and spring balances and would like to write the company for their catalog. I believe they are still in business because I see new Chatillon scales being used in local markets. The address line on the scales that I have in my collection or see is never more specific than "New York," which is not enough to track down the company through a phone directory. I would be very grateful if you could locate the address. - RL, Somerset, N.J.

A - A good collector is a good detective. It took only three phone calls to actually talk to a representative at the headquarters of John Chatillon & Sons Inc., scale manufacturers. You could have done it as easily as I did. The methods I used can serve as a model for other readers who are trying to locate a manufacturer who is still in business.

First, I called the Allentown-Lehigh County Chamber of Commerce. Local chambers do not have a national directory, but they do know their area businesses well. I simply asked the chamber to provide me with the name of the firm in this area that supplies scales to merchants.

Second, I spoke with Earl Kooker Sr. of Kookers Scale Co,, 4867 Hamilton Blvd., Wescosville. Earl had an old Chatillon company catalog and provided me an address and phone number.

Third, I called (718) 847-5000 and talked to Mrs. Perez at John Chatillon & Sons Inc., 8330 Kew Gardens Road, Kew Gardens, N.Y. 11415-1999. Mrs. Perez informed me that the company has been making scales since 1835. When I inquired if the company maintained a file of its past catalogs, she informed me that it does not. I wish there was a way to compel manufacturers to save at least one copy of each of their catalogs. At the very least, they should send one copy of each to the library of their local historical society. Old catalogs are very helpful when doing research about objects.

Had my efforts failed through the chamber of commerce, I planned to contact the International Society of Antique Scale Collectors, 20 N. Wacker Drive, Chicago, Ill. 60606. If you do not belong, you certainly should.

One final note: You requested a personal reply, because you have trouble obtaining copies of the paper in which "Rinker on Collectibles" appears. However, I simply do not have the time to do so. The solution is simple. Every paper for which I write sells subscriptions. Subscribe. If you did, you might have found this answer to your question.

* * *

Q - I have an old ice cream maker. It is not the common bucket-type. Rather, it is a rectangular box with a top section that lifts up. The ice and ice cream unit rests sideways in the box. What is its value? - AP, Perkasie, Pa.

A - Your letter provided me with a perfect excuse to call Ed Marcks, editor of the Ice Creamer Box 5387, Lancaster, Pa. 17601, and one of the premier collectors of ice cream memorabilia. Your ice cream maker is known as a horizontal freezer. Bucket-type freezers are readily available on the market. Old ones sell in the $30 to $45 range. Horizontal freezers are much more difficult to find. A complete unit marked with the name of the manufacturer and in very good condition is worth between $550 and $600. Your freezer shows signs of heavy use and the manufacturer's label appears to be missing. Its value falls in the $350 to $425 range, still not bad for an old kitchen utensil.

* * *

Q - Many years ago I acquired a sitting bulldog doorstop about eight inches high. There is no date on the piece, but it is marked "D. J. Murray Manufacturing Company, Wausau, Wisconsin. / Castings - Iron, Aluminum, and Bronze." How old is it and what is it worth: - BL, Emmaus, Pa.

A - I first consulted Jeanne Bertoia's "Doorstops: Identification & Values" (Collector Books, 1985). Jeanne's excellent book contains a section giving a brief history of doorstop manufacturers. I was surprised to find D.J. Murray Manufacturing Co. not listed. My curiosity was aroused. Next, I did what any good researcher would do under similar circumstances: I called the reference librarian, Gary Gisselman, at the Marathon County Public Library, Wausau, Wis. Gary informed me that the D.J. Murray Manufacturing Co., founded in 1882, was acquired in 1966 and became Murray Machine Co. Cast machinery for paper mills was the principal product of the company.

Because the company was still in business, I called and spoke with Tom Novak, a long-time employee, who agreed to do some checking for me. Based on his research, your doorstop was made in the 1950s or early 1960s. The company did not sell the doorstop; they gave it away as a promotional item. In addition to the sitting bulldog, the company also made a frog doorstop.

Unfortunately, you did not indicate from what material your bulldog was made. If it is made of aluminum, it dates before 1961. The D.J. Murray Mfg. Co. stopped making aluminum castings in that year.